Commitment (20 page)

Friday, December 19
^th

Cassidy opened the front door and felt a breeze blow by her. “Hi, Aunt Cassidy,” Cat managed as he flew past her toward the sound of Dylan’s voice up the stairs.

Cassidy shook her head and laughed. “Glad you could make it, Cat,” she mumbled. “Dylan’s upstairs,” she called to him playfully.

“I know!” he called back.

“Sorry about that,” Nick said.

Cassidy led him through the door. “Nothing to be sorry for,” she said.

“Are you sure it’s okay? I mean, Cat spending a couple of nights?” Nick asked.

“Of course,” Cassidy said in confusion. “Why wouldn’t it be okay?”

“I don’t know,” he said, moving to place Cat’s backpack near the stair. “I know Alex has been away and…”

“It’s more than okay,” Cassidy assured him. “Alex will be home tomorrow afternoon.”

“That’s what I mean. I know she’s been traveling and she…”

“Come on, let me get you a coffee,” Cassidy offered. “She has been away more than I would like. I admit it,” Cassidy said as she moved about the kitchen, readying the coffee pot. “But, it’s not forever. Barb needs the break. Helen needs to go home. We’ll bring him back after dinner on Sunday. Don’t worry about us.”

“She’s moving the offices; I heard,” Nick said as Cassidy placed a cup of coffee in front of him.

Cassidy nodded and took a seat beside her brother-in-law. “Yeah. Seems to be her focus this coming week,” she explained. “Good thing my mother and your mother love to shop or I would have had to take care of Santa’s list all by myself,” Cassidy joked.

“How are you doing?” Nick asked softly.

“Me?” Cassidy asked. Nick nodded. Cassidy let out a small sigh. “I’m fine, Nick. Honestly. It’s been a rough few months dealing with the custody and Alex being away so much. I won’t deny that. But, that will all pass. I’ll be glad when it does,” she admitted.

“You know, I can swing down Sunday, so you and Alex don’t….”

“No. No. Don’t fool yourself. She’ll be chomping at the bit to see that baby. We’ll bring Cat home.”

“Well, then at least come for dinner,” he said.

“Nick, the whole point of this is to give you two some quiet time,” Cassidy reminded him.

“It’s just dinner,” he said.

“All right. We’ll pick pizza up on the way. Deal?” Cassidy suggested.

“Cassidy?”

“Yeah?”

“Thanks. For everything, I mean,” Nick said sincerely.

Cassidy patted his hand and smiled. “Oh, don’t thank me too soon,” she said as she narrowed her gaze playfully. “You’ll get to return the favor at some point.”

Nick laughed. “Looking forward to
that
,” he said. Cassidy raised her brow in question. “She nearly passed out seeing Barb in labor. Big, tough FBI agent,” he mocked his sister. “Imagine if that was you? We’ll need a stretcher at the ready for sure.” Cassidy laughed at Nick’s assessment. “I should go,” Nick said. “Barb and Jake were both sleeping when I left. That won’t last long,” he chuckled.

Cassidy led her brother-in-law to the doorway. He called out his goodbye to the boys and turned back to her. “Thanks, Cassidy.”

Cassidy rubbed his back gently. “Stop thanking me. I will see you Sunday.” She started opening the door for Nick and found herself staring up into a pair of steel blue eyes. “Pip?”

“I promised I would come see the tree,” he said. Cassidy was stunned.

“I gotta get going,” Nick broke through the momentary silence.

“Oh, sorry…Alex tells me congratulations are in order,” Krause said.

“Yeah. Thanks,” Nick responded sincerely. “Thanks again, Cass.” Cassidy just nodded.

“Bad time?” Krause asked.

Cassidy shook her head and gestured for him to come inside. “What’s with the bags?” she asked.

Krause held up the two shopping bags in his hands. “These?” Cassidy raised her brow. “Oh…well, you can’t have a tree without presents under it,” Krause explained. “It’s against the law.”

Cassidy rolled her eyes and laughed. “Did you find that in the
Toles Code
?”

The comment startled Krause. “What?” he asked. Cassidy pointed to the Christmas tree in the corner of the room which was already brimming with brightly colored boxes.

“Oh,” he muttered.

“All right Santa Krause; what gives?” Cassidy asked.

“What do you mean? You made me promise to come see the tree.”

“Mm-hm. I suppose I did. So, then Alex didn’t ask you to check in on us while she was away?” Cassidy asked suspiciously.

“No….I just…”

“What is it with you two anyway?” she joked. “Just admit you like each other and be done with it,” she laughed. She looked at her friend and noted an unfamiliar expression. “Pip?” Krause looked to Cassidy and sighed. “What’s going on? Alex…”

“Alex is fine,” he said. “Cassidy,” he stopped himself and offered her a shrug and a smile.

Cassidy shook her head. “Come on, I’ll get you some coffee before those boys come down and torment you.”

“I hope it’s okay. She just worries, Cassie. I wanted to stop and drop off the presents anyway.”

“I know she does, and of course it’s okay. You don’t need an invitation or an excuse. That’s how family works,” Cassidy said.

Jonathan Krause sat at the counter and watched his friend putter around the kitchen and place a cup of coffee in front of him before taking her seat. He gazed at her affectionately and realized that as much as he loved her, she had first and foremost been a friend he could trust. There were so few of those in the life he had chosen. “Cassie?”

“Yeah?”

Krause took a deep breath. “It’s up to you. You and Alex.” He handed her the letter he had retrieved in Stockholm. “I think maybe you should give it to her. Whatever you decide… even if you decide not to…well, I will always make sure Dylan is safe. I promise you.”

Cassidy tugged gently at her bottom lip and nodded. Her lips gradually turned up into a genuine smile, and she covered his hand with her own. “He’s a lucky kid,” she said.

“Yeah, he is,” Krause agreed looking at her. Cassidy understood. She could never deny that Jonathan Krause loved her. It was evident in every glance and every interaction. He stood in stark contrast to her ex-husband; he respected her. And, as she sat looking at him, she was reminded that she loved him too, albeit differently than he would have liked. Krause held her gaze for a moment and squeezed her hand. “He couldn’t do any better than you and Alex,” he said with more sincerity than Cassidy could immediately fathom.

Cassidy patted her friend’s cheek and winked at him. “Don’t sell yourself short, Pip,” she said. “Stay for dinner?” she asked hopefully. Krause gave her an uncomfortable grin. “Get used to it,” Cassidy laughed. “It comes with the package. Helen would disown me if I didn’t feed you.”

Krause continued to watch Cassidy and enjoy the effortless nature of their discussion until the boisterous entrance of two small boys interrupted them. “Uncle Pip!” Dylan squealed.

Cassidy laughed. “Slow it down, Dylan,” she cautioned.

“You know what?” Dylan asked his Uncle Pip. Krause shook his head and pulled Dylan into his lap. “Cat got a brother.”

“I heard that. That’s exciting Cat,” Krause said.

“Nah…all he does is poop,” Cat shrugged. Cassidy had to turn away to keep herself from launching into a fit of laughter.

“It’s still cool,” Dylan said.

“I guess,” Cat answered with a noncommittal shrug. Krause couldn’t help but laugh. He remembered his younger brothers being born and how his initial excitement quickly turned to annoyance; annoyance that lasted on and off for the rest of his life. “That’s just the way brothers are,” he thought silently.

“Well, I think it’s cool,” Dylan said. “I asked Santa for one.”

Cassidy spun around with her jaw slack. “You asked Santa for what?”

“A brother,” Dylan said.

Krause looked at Cassidy with wide eyes. Seeing his friend uncharacteristically fumble, he intervened. “That’s not exactly something Santa makes in his workshop, Dylan,” Krause explained.

Dylan shrugged. “Alex says Santa is magic.”

Cassidy shook her head in disbelief. “All right. On that note,” she changed the course of the conversation. “You two need to go pick up Dylan’s room before dinner.”

“You staying, Uncle Pip?”

“If that’s okay with you,” he said.

“Yep. Come on, Cat,” Dylan directed as he hopped off of his Uncle Pip’s lap.

Cassidy continued shaking her head absently as she watched the two friends run off. “You know, he is magic,” Krause said.

“Mm-hm,” was Cassidy’s only response.

“Never know what Santa might deliver, Cassie. He’s surprised me a few times,” he joked.

“I don’t think Santa owns the sperm bank,” she quipped.

Krause laughed. “Might have an ‘in’ though.”

Cassidy threw a towel that had been laying on the counter at her friend. “You are worse than Alex,” she laughed. “Do me a favor and go make sure those two are actually cleaning that room.”

Domesticity was not Krause’s strong suit, but he enjoyed spending time at Alex and Cassidy’s. Both his parents had been gone for years. It didn’t take long after his mother’s sudden death four years before, for the rest of the family to grow farther apart. He had a nephew and a niece, but he rarely saw them. His father had been rigid, but his mother was warm, and he held fond memories of his childhood. Dylan seemed to rekindle that. He gladly obliged his friend’s request.

Cassidy set about her tasks and paused to put her face in her hands momentarily. She felt for the chain around her neck and smiled. “Santa Claus, huh?” she giggled.

Monday, December 22
^nd

“Happy to be back, Ms. Toles?” Marta greeted her boss.

“Marta, for the love of God! Alex. Just call me Alex.”

“Whatever you want. So, the big move starts today?” she asked.

“Yes, it does. You know, you don’t have to make such a big move. I can certainly find a comparable spot for you here,” Alex offered.

“No. Change is good. I worked for your father for the last fifteen years. He’d never forgive me if I left you high and dry. You were the apple of his eye, you know.”

“No, I didn’t,” Alex tried to smile at the woman’s earnest compliment. “He was fortunate to have you,” Alex said honestly.

“I’m not sure he always felt that way, but thank you,” Marta said.

“I know exactly what you mean,” Alex mumbled as she entered her office. Alex sat down at her desk and began booting up the computer. She looked at the pictures carefully placed just inches away and then at a small, carefully wrapped box nearby. A gradual smile played across her lips as she thought about her family’s first Christmas together. She closed her eyes attempting to imagine Dylan on Christmas morning.

“You look cheerful,” she heard in the distance. Alex opened her eyes and was startled by the presence of her mother in the doorway. “Good thing you are inside and it’s December, or you would be catching flies,” Helen laughed.

“What are you doing here?” Alex asked.

“Happy Holidays to you too, Alexis.”

“I’m sorry. I just didn’t expect to see you,” Alex explained.

“Well, I wanted to check up on my investments,” Helen joked. Alex shook her head at her mother’s playful nature. It was true, technically Helen Toles now owned fifty-one percent of Carecom. She had never displayed any interest in the actual workings of the company. Alex was more than aware that the only investments her mother truly had an interest in regarded family.

“Did Cassidy send you to make certain I finished my Christmas shopping?” Alex asked.

“No. She doesn’t need my help keeping you in line, Alexis. I, however, am eternally grateful for her.” Helen’s reply was cheerful in its delivery, but Alex immediately sensed the underlying sincerity of the statement and she couldn’t help but smile. “Actually, I was hoping I could convince you to have lunch with me.”

“Mom, it’s nine in the morning.”

“Thank you. I have been able to tell time since before what they call the digital era. I meant later.”

Alex laughed. “You really are spending too much time with Rose. I don’t ever remember you having a sense of humor,” Alex said as seriously as she could manage. Helen just smiled at her daughter and awaited a response to the invitation. “Why do I think there is an ulterior motive in this lunch?”

“Alexis, not everything is a case to solve,” Helen sighed.

“What time were you thinking?”

“One-ish? I have a doctor’s appointment this morning,” her mother replied.

Alex’s expression grew pensive. “Is everything all right?”

“I’m fine. Routine. How about Fazzini’s? I have a few errands to run this afternoon in that area. I want to get them all put to rest so that I can leave for Nick’s early tomorrow,” her mother explained.

“That should work. I have a meeting at noon, so if I am a little…”

“I will get us a table,” Helen said.

“All right. Mom?” Alex asked. “Everything is all right, isn’t it?”

Helen walked to her daughter and looked at her lovingly. Alex’s eyes glistened slightly, and Helen smiled. It had taken time for the two to reach this point in their relationship. Trust had to be rebuilt, and Alex did not trust easily. Helen was not certain what Alex had learned about her father since agreeing to take his place at Carecom. It was clear that her husband’s actions toward Alex and Cassidy’s relationship had wounded her daughter deeply. It remained a subject she did not approach with Alex. Looking into her daughter’s eyes now she witnessed the naked fears of a little girl she once comforted after a nightmare. No matter what had come to pass, it was evident that Alex still felt the loss of her father profoundly and Helen could see the question in her daughter’s eyes.